Warren hits CFPB director with 100-question quizzing

As might be expected, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), an architect of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is vocal in her opposition to the pro-business, deregulatory approach of Acting Director Mick Mulvaney, who also serves as director of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget.

In Warren’s latest salvo, she delivered a list of more than 100 questions for Mulvaney, following up on his recent testimony before the Senate Banking Committee. She demanded more information on the Bureau’s Payday Rule, its recent data collection freeze, and approach to enforcement actions.

Warren also pressed Mulvaney on why the CFPB’s Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity was stripped of its enforcement powers and whether the Bureau will continue to supervise student loan servicers and debt collectors.

Among the topics and themes included in the questions:

What Mulvaney meant when he said the CFPB is no longer doing “regulation by enforcement.” Will the CFPB continue to open investigations, negotiate settlements or file lawsuits under its Unfair, Deceptive, Abusive Acts and Practices enforcement authority?

Whether Mulvaney’s review of enforcement cases is still ongoing, when it's projected to end, details of cases settled by the CFPB, and how many cases have been dropped.

How much the CFPB intends to request in transfers from the Federal Reserve to its budget for the remaining two quarters of the fiscal year. For the current fiscal quarter, Mulvaney requested $0 from the Fed, the Bureau's source of funding.

What analysis did the CFPB use as justification to halt its rules for payday lenders?